Richard Paul Abernathy

Courtesy of and special thanks to: Purdue University Department of Nutrition Science 2007 Hall of Fame Inductee R. Paul Abernathy Paul Abernathy was head of the Department of Nutrition Science from 1974-1991. During this period the department greatly increased its emphasis on research. External grants increased from $30,000 per year to more than $1.5 million. Teaching and Extension goals were also strongly supported. He fostered a climate of collegiality and respect within the department that continues to this day. His favorite policy comment was, "I never hired anyone unless they were smarter than I am." The humor and humility evident in that statement say much about how he created this open working environment. Dr. Abernathy received the B.S. degree from Berry College. This was a unique institution dedicated to low-income rural children of the south. Everyone had to work two days per week and go to classes 4 days per week. After graduation he served for three years in U.S. Army Intelligence, then he pursued the M.S. degree at University of Georgia, followed by the Ph.D. degree from Cornell University in 1960. He conducted human nutrition research at the Georgia Experiment Station for six years, followed by eight years at Virginia Polytechnic Institute as associate professor and professor before coming to Purdue as department head in 1974. His research primarily centered on protein needs of children, but in later years he focused on obesity and longevity with emphasis on healthy lifestyle. He published about 40 scientific articles. He was active in campus leadership and professional organizations. He served as chair of the Committee on Use of Human Subjects in Research for several years, editor and associate editor of the IFT Nutrition Division Newsletter and chair of the Indiana Nutrition Council. He served on an "Expert Work Group" for the United States Department of Agriculture establishing a scientific basis for policy decision on evaluating protein quality of meats, poultry and their products for regulatory purposes. He served on the executive committee of the nutrition division of IFT and received a USDA Superior Service Award. Growing up on the farm in the mountains of north Georgia, he lived without electricity, telephones, central heat or refrigeration. He milked cows by hand, planted and cultivated crops with aid of mules, worked at a "saw mill" cutting trees and hauling logs. His nearest neighbor, mail delivery and the bus were all a mile away. Neither of his parents, John and Zora, went to school beyond sixth grade but they had a strong desire for their four children to "get a good education" which in their mind was through high school. He went to college to please them. Paul Abernathy credits Mr. Newman Parker, who taught him for the first five grades of primary school with 30 students in 7 grades, as having a big impact on his education. He is also grateful to his wife, Mary Frances, who helped finance his study for a Ph.D. He attributes the success he has had to the work ethic and values he developed during these formative years and the encouragement of his parents, teachers, friends, wife and a lot of luck. Obituary courtesy of McCommons Funeral Home (www.mccommonsfuneralhome.com) Paul Abernathy, a long-time resident of Greensboro, died Saturday, June 15. He was 87. Born March 22, 1932, to John and Zora Abernathy in McCaysville, GA, Paul grew up in Blairsville, GA, and attended a one-room school-house. At 17, he went to Berry College (Rome, Ga), where he received a bachelor of science degree, working on the school farm to put himself through college. After graduating from Berry, Paul served for three years with U.S. Army Intelligence in Germany. He then headed back home to Georgia to work on a master's degree at the University of Georgia, where he met the love of his life, Mary Frances (Davis) Abernathy. They married in 1957. His first son, Carl, was born a year later in Ithaca, NY, while Paul was working on his PhD at Cornell University. His other two sons, David and Dan, were born in Griffin, GA, while he worked at the Georgia Experiment Station. After six years there, the family moved to Blacksburg, VA, where Paul served as a professor of Foods and Nutrition for eight years. In 1974, he accepted a position as head of Purdue University's Department of Foods and Nutrition. During his 17 years as the department head, Paul molded the department into one of the top college nutrition programs in the country. He always told people during his 17 years as the head of Purdue University's Department of Foods and Nutrition that he liked to hire faculty members smarter than him. Paul did hire great people and they loved him for his even-tempered, visionary leadership. Foods and Nutrition won a multitude of teaching awards at Purdue. Paul and his staff also turned the department into one of the preeminent research programs in the country, attracting millions of dollars in research grants. He taught at Purdue for eight years after stepping down as the department head. In retirement, Paul and Mary Frances bought a home on Lake Oconee not too far from where Mary Frances grew up in Sparta. It also allowed Paul to indulge daily in his favorite hobby, fishing. He found plenty of time to volunteer, too. Paul loved to tutor school children in math and he spent a great deal of time serving his church. Over the years at First Baptist Church of Greensboro, Paul was a deacon, chairman of deacons, Sunday school teacher, church moderator; Pastor Search Committee Chairman, and Sunday school director. He taught in several areas such as Vacation Bible school, AWANA, and Royal Ambassadors. And he served as regional director for the Samaritan Purse Shoe Box Program. Paul was preceded in death by his father, John; his mother Zora; his brother, Bill; and his sister, Barbara. He is survived by his wife, Mary Frances; his three sons, Carl, David, and Dan (Beth); two granddaughters, Annie and Amelia; and a sister, Dorothy. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, June 18, 2019 at the First Baptist Church, 203 S. Main Street, Greensboro, GA 30642 with Rev. Mark Jones officiating. Pallbearers will be Randy Abernathy, Phillip Abernathy, Sidney Scoggins, Jerry Davis, Mike Davis, Cecil Scoggins, Bobby Moore, Darell Mixon, Jack Byers and Robert Byers. Interment will follow in Sparta City Cemetery, Hamilton Street, Sparta, GA 31087. In lieu of flowers the family requests that memorials may be made to The First Baptist Church, 203 S. Main Street, Greensboro, GA 30642 or Greene County Habitat for Humanity, P O Box 321, Greensboro, GA 30642. The family will receive friends Monday, June 17, 2019 at the First Baptist Church from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. McCommons Funeral Home, 109 W. Broad St., Greensboro, GA, (706) 453-2626, is in charge of arrangements. Visit us at www.mccommonsfuneralhome.com to sign the online guest register.